Horse not "quite right" is my vet fobbing me off!

[delbino7]

Before anyone pipes up, I've had the vet out but they weren't the most helpful.

Lunging my mare almost 2 weeks ago I realised she wasn't "quite right" a little "off" in her front near side leg.

Called my physio and she came out the next evening on arrival my horse was then "hopping lame" a hell of a lot worse than she was the previous day. Physio and I agreed that now wasn't the time to treat her and luckily a vet was on the yard to give another horse it's vaccinations and kindly agreed to check her over while he was there and said it was an abscess brewing but it wasn't obvious and to get farrier to remove shoe and to poultice it.

Farrier arrived next morning at the yard (not my usual farrier just one coincidently coming the next morning as he does every week) I asked him to remove shoe And he pulled out his hoof testers and tells me it's not an abscess as she is totally unresponsive. So I call my usual farrier he comes later that day as he is passing and agrees it's not an abscess and thinks she's knocked herself.

So I phone vet again and she comes out few days later and finds a little heat in one leg (the one she's not herself on) but she's not hopping lame anymore just a bit "off" puts her on a 10 days dose of bute (2 sachets twice a day for 3 days. 1 sachet twice daily for 3 days and one daily after that) and to cold hosed every morning an night and to turn her out like normal. So she finishes these tomorrow and although still not herself isn't hopping lame and is managing to happily buck, bronk and gallop around her field. Any recommendations what to do next I feel like the vets just fobbed me off with bute for an easy life. She didn't even ask to see her in trot and is sound in walk is this normal?
Any advice appreciated right now....

 

[Pinkvboots]

It does seem odd the vet didn't see the horse trot and I would have thought box rest would have been advised in case it is something more serious as going nuts in the field won't help, I suppose the next option now would be to nerve block if she is still not right that's what's I would want now to be honest.

 

[be positive]

I am surprised they did not see the horse trot but the "treatment" given is pretty much normal in cases where there is nothing really obvious to deal with and the most likely cause is bruising from a knock, I don't think you were fobbed off as such because she could have gone the opposite way, got the horse in for a full workup, done numerous nerve blocks, xrays and scans only to end up saying it is soft tissue bruising, rest for a week or two.
As she is still not right now is the time to get the vet back to see if she does require a full examination to get to the root cause but it may still just need a few more days for any bruising to fully resolve.

 

[JillA]

It's a preliminary stage - I'm sure you wouldn't want to spend megabucks on something much more invasive if it is only a knock or similar. Go with it, and then if when she comes off the bute, be prepared to ask for more investigation. But honestly, except in the more extreme cases the usual "treatment" is a few days field rest, with or without pain relief - I usually rest mine for 48 hours to see if it improves or deteriorates when they are just a bit unsound.